1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a computer-based simulation learning system that enables a user to interact with computer-generated characters to learn leadership skills and, more particularly, for a computer-based learning system wherein a user's leadership skills are developed through communicating with computer-generated characters by verbal and physical (body language) communication.
2. Background of the Related Art
Leadership training traditionally depended on a teacher/student model where the teacher instructs students from the front of a classroom on the do's and don'ts of leadership, walks students through roll-playing scenarios, and provides a short test to determine whether the students absorbed any of the information disseminated during the training session.
The traditional method has its merits, however, it has a number of drawbacks as well. One drawback is that teachers tend to take a purely pedagogical approach, pontificating on the rules of leadership, and spend little if any time on implementing the lessons they teach. Another drawback is that providing such leadership training requires the expenditure of a significant amount of resources, including the cost of the teacher and the time managers spend away from their jobs to attend training. Yet another drawback is that it is difficult via the traditional method to provide uniform training to a large number of individuals, such as that found in medium to large corporations.
The ubiquitous nature of computer systems in industry has prompted a number of software developers to create computer-based learning systems that attempt to address the deficiencies of traditional leadership training. Examples of such systems are sold by Ninth House Network (San Francisco, Calif.) and Imparta Ltd. (London, UK). In Ninth House's system, video-based simulations play out like TV dramas. Following a brief video to set the stage, users are asked to choose from a series of responses that direct a course of action, made possible by a technique known as branching video. An advantage of these computer-based systems is that they are more accessible to larger numbers of managers since you only need a desktop computer system to use them. A significant disadvantage is that such systems provide little more than high-end video instruction resulting in a lack of user interactivity, that is, the user becomes more of an observer and less of a participant in the learning experience.
There are prior-art computer systems that have attempted to simulate user/computer-animated character interactivity, however, they are not directed toward teaching leadership skills. Furthermore, the prior-art computer systems are intended to reproduce user activity (e.g., create computer-animated character versions of participants in a chat session), or inadequately attempt to provide a computer-animated character that can interact with a user. Examples of such prior-art computer systems follow.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,003, to Gechter, discloses an interactive, electronic game apparatus for playing a game in which game characters appearing on a display are responsive to inputs from a game user. The apparatus includes a visual display presenting an observable state of the game and of the game characters to the game user in response to a display signal; an input device for interactively entering user input signals representative of user interaction with game characters; and processing means receiving the user input signals from the input device and generating the display signal and outputting the display signal to the visual display.
The processing means includes an extensible plurality of independent character behavior controllers for determining the behavior of respective game characters, each character behavior controller containing independent behavior logic to determine states and state transitions of its respective game character as represented to the user by the display means. The character behavior controllers are responsive to the user input signals and to game control signals for adjusting the behavior of the respective game characters. The apparatus also includes a game controller for coordinating the behavior of the game characters. The game controller contains logic to determine consistent game states for the game and the characters, and transmit game control signals to the character behavior controllers so that the state of the game and of the game characters is a consistent game state. The apparatus also includes an operating application for operation of the character behavior controllers and the game controller on the processing means. Each character behavior controller includes an independent dynamically-linked procedure invoked by the operating application. The game controller includes logic to add new character behavior controllers to the game.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,880,731, to Liles et al., discloses a system using avatars to represent participants in a graphic chat session that are periodically animated to produce a gesture that conveys an emotion, action, or personality trait. Each participant in the chat session is enabled to select one of a plurality of different avatars to represent the participant in a graphic chat session. Associated with each avatar is a bitmap file that includes a plurality of frames illustrating the avatar in different poses, actions, and emotional states. Selected frames are displayed in rapid sequence in accord with a script file to create an animation effecting each gesture. The same script file is used to define a gesture for all of the avatars used in the chat session. A selected gesture can be transmitted with a text message to convey the user's emotional state. A gesture associated with the avatar is automatically displayed from time to time when the avatar is not otherwise gesturing or moving. The user can determine participants in the chat session with whom the user will interact, e.g., by defining a proximity radius around the user's avatar or by selecting the specific participants from a list. Avatars of participants that are outside the proximity radius (or otherwise not selected) and messages received from them are not displayed on the user's monitor.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,306, to Nitta, discloses a network-based animated electronic meeting place for business meetings, education, simulated classrooms, casual encounters, personal meetings, art auctions, parties and game playing, which includes a terminal for each participant on the network and local pre-stored animation graphics, with simulated participants in the form of animated characters or dolls being driven through sensing of each of the participants at their respective work stations, including their position, posture, gestures, audio content and optionally that persona which each individual wishes to be displayed at the animated electronic meeting place. In one embodiment, a user chooses how he represents himself on the screen through the use of a persona or character control. The animated electronic meeting place is provided with real time 3-D graphics renderings, showing the meeting with all of the participants including the individual participant as himself, a microphone to capture the user's speech, digital sound processing for voice localization, and position sensors to detect the participant's gestures and/or facial expressions as well as body movement.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,491,743, to Shiio et al., discloses a terminal apparatus for a virtual conference system including a display means for displaying a virtual conference room used for holding a virtual conference and for displaying, in the virtual conference room, animated characters representing attendants at the virtual conference; an indication means for indicating an action of an animated character representing the user; an information output means for outputting action information for the animated character representing the user indicated by the indication means; and character control means for actuating the other animated characters in accordance with input action information for the other animated characters, and for actuating the animated character representing the user in accordance with the indicated action.
What is needed is a learning system that takes advantage of the ubiquitous nature of computer systems so that the learning system can be made available to a large number of users. In addition, a learning system is needed that provides users with a high level of interactivity so that roll-playing remains a part of the learning experience. The learning system should provide real-time feedback to users and a real-life learning experience.
These and other features of the system disclosed herein will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the figures.